Golf practice tee



G. W. HERMAN GOLF PRACTICE TEE Filed Feb. 28, 1.949

' posite threadediat its lower endportion l2 to receive Patented Nov.14, 1950 LIN- TED STATES PATENT OFFICE GOLF PRACTICE TEE George W.Herman, Long'Hill, Conn.

Application February 28,1949, Serial No. 78,783

7 Claims. 1

This invention relates to a golf practice tee,

and has for an object to provide a suitable and effective device for usein practicing the swing of the clubs in the game of golf and willindicate whether the stroke is properly executed or whether it is out ofline to one side or the other of the proper direction for driving theball.

A further object is to provide a device of this character which willassist golfers to improve and straighten out their tee shots, and onewhich may be used in a relatively small area without requiring the useof a bona fide golf ball.

Withthe foregoing and other objects in view, I have devised theconstruction illustrated in the accompanying drawing forming a part ofthis specification. It is, however, to be understood the invention isnot limited to the specific I detailsof construction and arrangementshown,

:erly directed or executed.

The device comprisesa body member H3 preferably in the form of a tubularmember, with a longitudinal passage il opening through its op- .ends,this passage being internally the externally threaded stud I3 of a spademember id comprising a central stem [5 pointed at its lower end it, onwhich stem is mounted the blade comprising one or more Wings [1, alsopointed at its lower end 18 so that it may be readily driven into theground or sod. Secured to the upper end of the body H3 is a rounded capor head l9. This cap is preferably of rubber vulcanized to sufiicientstiffness to be able to withstand the blows of the golf club, butsufficiently yieldable and resilient so as not to injure the head of theclub, and it has an outer flange 2!! adapted to rest on the top of theturf or ground 2|. It may be secured to the body 10 by any suitablemeans, but in the form shown the body has a flange 22 at its upper endembedded in a socket in the cap. This cap has an opening 23 through itin alignment with the passage in the'body and in this passage is aslidablecupped carrier or follower. for a marking element "25 which maybe a colored wax or chalk crayon or other marking medium, and betweenthe follower 24 and the 'top of the stud I3 is a coil spring 26 toyieldingly support the crayon or marker.

In use, the lower portion of the device including the spade I4 is pushedinto the ground so that the rubber top or cap l9 rests on top of thesurface'2l of the ground, as shown in Fig. 5. The wings ll keepthe stem15 from turning and also provide lateral support for the tee, so that byturning the rubber head or cap [9 the body I0 may be turned and throughthe action of the threaded connection 13 the wings H may be shifted upand down, and this acting through the spring '26 adjusts the height ofthe marking crayon 25 so as to have just the upper end of the crayonproject a short distance above the top of the cap.l9 forthe markingoperation on thegolf club, .and also to project more of the .crayonasitwears down. The crayon will make a mark on the underside of the clubhead as it passes over the top of the tee in making a stroke, and the.position or inclination of this line will indicate whether ,it is agoodstraight stroke or whether it is off, such, forexample, as a sliceor hook. Practice swings are made over the device until the marker orcrayon ,comes in contact with the bottom of the club head. Scribed linesmade ,by this marker on the bottom of the club head indicate thedirection of the ball.

.Thus,.in Fig. 7, with the ball indicated at 2'! and .the club headoutlined at.28, a-straight hit would beindicated .by the .line 29, whilea hook would be indicated by an inclined linejfl and a slice by aninclined'line 3!, on the under face of the club head. Practice swingsare performed until the golfer can obtain a straight line at rightangles to the club face. It is not necessary to use the device on a golfcourse, as it may be used in the golfers back yard or on the lawn. Afterthe crayon has been worn down it may be readily renewed and properlyadjusted by rotating the head or cap iii. A gummed label may be placedon the bottom of the club head with lines painted or printed on it toindicate the lines 29, 39 and 3! is desired, and it would indicate tothe golfer what type of stroke he made from the mark made on this labelby the crayon.

If desired, a resilient imitative ball may be placed over the marker.Thus, as shown in Fig. 1,

3 this may be a hollow rubber ball 32 with a foot or pedestal 33 restingon the cap or head l9 to seat over the top of the crayon 25. Such apedestal would, for example, be used with a No. 1 wooden club, while nopedestal would be used for Nos. 2, 3 and 4 woods. To retain this ball, ametal or plastic ring 34 could be provided about the body H] andattached to the ball by a good grade of line 35 fastened to the ball at36. The ball could be provided with a recess or opening 31 on the clubface side so as to clear the end of the crayon 25 when the ball is hitby the club,

It will be evident from the above that this is a very simple andeffective device for permitting a golfer to practice his strokes at homeor in a small space, and will not only permit him to practice thesestrokes, but will indicate whether the stroke is properly executed; thisis, whether it is straight on the ball as it should be or whether it isoff or out of line, such, for example, as a hook or slice,

Having thus set forth the nature of my invention, I claim:

1. A golf practice tee comprising a body member provided with alongitudinal passage, a rounded cap secured to the upper end having anopening in alignment with said passage, a spade member including alateral wing adapted to be forced into the ground, said spade memberalso including a stud threaded into the lower end of the body member forlongitudinal adjustment therein, and a marking element mounted in thepassage above said stud and supported by the stud for adjustment therebyto a position to project above the top of the cap for marking a golfclub swung over the cap.

2. A golf practice tee comprising a tubular body member open at itsopposite ends, a winged spade member including a stud having threadedconnection with the lower end of said body and forceable into theground, a resilient cap secured to the upper end of the body andprovided with a flange to rest on the top of the ground, said cap beingprovided with an opening in its top wall, a marking crayon mounted inthe body member and projecting at its upper end through the opening atthe top of the cap, and means operable by relative turning movementsbetween the body and spade members for adjusting the position of thecrayon.

3. A golf practice tee comprising a tubular body member provided with alongitudinal passage open at its upper end, a winged spade memberconnected with said body and forceable into the ground, a resilient capsecured to the upper end of the body and provided with an opening inalignment with the passage in the body, a crayon mounted in saidpassage, and means for shifting the crayon to project above the top ofthe cap 4 at its upper end to mark a golf club head swung over the cap.

4. A golf practice tee comprising a tubular body member provided with alongitudinal passage open at its upper end, a winged spade memberforceable into the ground, means connecting the spade member with thebody for relative longitudinal adjustment by turning movement of thebody, a cap secured to the upper end of the body and provided with aflange to rest on top of the ground, a marking means mounted in saidpassage and movable to a position with its upper end projecting abovethe cap to mark the head of a club swung over the cap, and meansoperated by movement of the spade member to adjust the position of themarking means.

5. A golf practice tee comprising a body member and a winged spademember connected therev with adapted to be forced into the ground, aresilient cap on the upper end of the body member, and a marking memberprojecting at its upper end above the top of the cap to mark the lowersurface of a golf club swung over the cap,

6. A golf practice tee comprising a tubular body member forceable to anupright position in the ground, a resilient cap secured to the upper endof the body and provided with a flange to rest on the top of the groundto limit movement of the body into the ground, and a marking meansmounted to project above the top of the cap to mark the lower face of agolf club swung over the cap.

7. A golf practice tee comprising a tubular body member, a winged spademember connected to the body member and adapted to be forced into theground, a resilient cap secured to the upper end of the body andprovided with a flange to rest on the surface of the ground, a markingcrayon mounted to project at its upper end above the top of the cap tomark the lower surface of a golf club swung over the cap, a hollowrubber ball open at its lower side to seat on the cap over the end ofthe crayon, and a cord connecting the ball to the body.

GEORGE W. HERMAN.

REFERENCES CITED The following references are of record in the file ofthis patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 686,265 Crowe Nov. 12, 19011,527,716 Tippen et al. Feb. 24, 1925 FOREIGN PATENTS Number CountryDate 212,378 Great Britain Mar. 13, 1924 243,073 Great Britain Nov, 23,1925

